Catesby is the founder of Peace Frogs and incidentally my sister-in-law's twin sister's husband. (Did you follow that?)  Anyway... a nice guy even though he's an R. 

several activist types like Jones among them.

Gear is collecting votes for the convention and getting people to commit to being his "delegates". Yet he tells the Daily Press, "I haven't made my mind up yet"!  Really?

Why collect delegates if you haven't made up your mind?

Gear needs to tell voters his intentions, so when they vote for him for HOuse of Delegates, they will know that he has no intention of serving out the full term. Full term?  heck the day after the election is when he tells people he will "reveal it all". 

What a lousy con artist!

When you look at the current races either Del Toro or Pollard are in good organized positions to run for the Congressional Seat, but that's just it .... they are running for a State positions. To make noises or moves for the unexpectantly vacant Congressional seat would be viewed as over-reaching I'm afraid. And oh by the way ... they would have to win what they're after right now (tough enough, already).

As far as name recognition and likability both Hap Connors and Ed Houk would be at the top of my list. Ed as some would recall introduced John Edwards and Jim Webb at the Mary Washington Rally last fall. He's an incumbant State Senator who has managed to win (repeatedly) in the very RED Spotsylvania district. Hap is a great guy, too.

Overall this is one race which the Democratic Party (national) should really get behind. It would be a good race to focus on (I think it would get some national level attention) and resource .... just to get a Democratic Party message out in an off cycle election.

He's well known in Virginia.  He's more of a conservative Democrat which might work best in this district.  He has network of supporters and he's been a good fundraiser. 

If Houck were willing to run, I think the Democrats would really rally behind him and but even more it would be good for Democratic morale if a Democrat ran in this race.  This district has been ignored too long and it's been written off as Republican, I believe, out of laziness to do the real work of IDing the Dems and finding good candidates. If the organizing techniques that have been used so well in NoVa were applied here, I think the DPVA would be surprised to find that there are many more Dems than they realize.  This area is a bit like what is described in Tom Franks book "What's the matter with Kansas?"  All you have to do is look at the LTEs in the Free Lance Star and see how successfully the Republicans have convinced the underprivileged that they are the victims of the hands of the imagined liberal elite.  There are lots of rural residents in the 1st CD who would be much better served by the Democrats but there has not been, from my viewpoint, the effort to appeal to those folks.  They are steeped in ignorance and half-knowledge about what would be best for their future and their children's future.  It is an area that is so ripe for the populist, progressive message that it is a real shame that it being ignored.  Wake up Virginia Democrats and DPVA to an area that could deliver votes for you. 

I heard John McGlennon speak - he laughingly dismissed any idea that he would run, and spoke for a while about the "perfect storm" that would be necessary for a Democrat to win.

Basically: if Republicans waste their time bashing each other and picking a weak candidate FROM THE NORTHERN PART of the district while Democrats smoothly defer to Phil Forgit (who looks most likely to run on that list because unlike the elected officials, he has nothing to lose nor is he already a loser like O'Donnell), a Democrat from THE SOUTHERN PART of the district, the Williamsburg/Lower Penninsula area businesses and voters (the plurality of the district lives here) will get behind a moderate Democrat because they are honestly afraid of losing their representation in Congress.  Think about it - the Beach has representation, Richmond has more than it's share, so does Northern Virginia, the Valley, and Southwest.  It's this Southeastern part of the State before Hampton Roads that would never let a percieved "Northern Virginian" hold its place in the US Congress.

With that in place - a Southern Democrat and a Northern Republican, then the DCCC has to step in.  Why, you might ask, would the DCCC waste their money on a seemingly impossible race?  Well, last fundraising quarter the DCCC pulled in $28 million while the NRCC got a meager $1.6 million.  So let's say the DCCC takes $2 million out of the bank and gives it to the Democrat, the Republicans will need to bankrupt themselves funding their candidate, therefore setting up a bleak and dismal money forecast for any Republican interested in running against an incumbent Democrat in 2008.

So how 'bout that?  Yeah, with ultra-low voter turnout in the middle of the Holiday Season and a strong campaign, we could actually win this thing!

and I'm sure some of these names, like McGlennon, are mere speculation.

He received a Bronze Starfor Iraq duty...

and he received the 2005 NEA Award for Teaching Excellence

If that area could improve their voter turnout (a measly 30% in 2003) when Forgit ran a good race against Rapp, he might have a good chance.

Is the December 11 date the primary?

Given the short time frame, a primary is impossible. It usually is in special elections.  There will be some sort of caucus or convention process, and it will have to happen the weekend after the November election, because state law requires that the parties complete their nomination process 30 days before the special election (Code of Virginia §24.2-510, para. 5).  DPVA's 1st CD Committee is responsible for organizing this, and they should be working on it right now.

A commenter above said that the Democratic nominating event will have to be "...the weekend after the November election, because state law requires that the parties complete their nomination process 30 days before the special election (Code of Virginia §24.2-510, para. 5)". 

That's in just 2 weeks.  Anyone know the status on whether the above folks have made up their minds and filed?  I've been told that Lana Ingram (Diggs) has put her paperwork in.  Any others?

the convention will apparently be Nov. 10 in Williamsburg.